6 Steps to Dispute a Credit Report
Posted in Finance on 10/14/2010 12:59 pm by
Stephen Chua asked:
Each of the three major credit bureaus receive credit data from thousands of data providers each day. Each month, the number of updates to their database can run into the billions. Thus it is nearly impossible to avoid incorrect or incomplete information.
Each bureaus has their own procedure for consumers to dispute their credit report. However, in general, it can be broken down into six steps
Step 1 – Get Your Credit Report
You order your credit report from all of the credit bureaus. Review them and list down the incorrect or incomplete information.
Step 2 – Submit A Dispute Request
You submit your dispute request via email, telephone or using the online form provided by the credit bureaus.
Step 3 – Credit Bureaus Investigate
Upon receiving your request, the credit bureau will investigate your dispute by contacting the creditors involved.
Step 4 – Creditors Investigate and Respond To Credit Bureaus
The creditors will investigate to see if the dispute is valid. They will then respond to the bureaus with the results their investigation.
Step 5 – Credit Bureaus Update Their File
If the creditors confirm that disputes are valid, the credit bureaus will update their database with the correct information.
Step 6 – Credit Bureaus Notify You
Within 30 to 45 days, depending on how complex your dispute is, you will receive a notification about the result of your dispute. IF there are changes to your credit report, an updated copy will be send to you at no extra charge.
If you are disputing the records in your free annual credit report, the turnaround time will be 45 days.
For faster result, you can also contact the creditors directly to dispute the records in your credit reports. In this case, you can skip step 2 and 3. However, if you have no experience or are not confident in dealing with creditors directly, it is better to leave the job to the bureaus.
Once you receive the updated credit reports from the bureaus, make sure you examine them carefully to make sure the incorrect information has been removed. In the event the information you dispute has been re verify as correct, you can request the bureaus to show the record as disputed. If you want, you can also add a statement to explain the dispute.
As the credit reports contain vital information that affects your financial health, you should not hesitate to dispute any records that you know to be incorrect, especially if you have the evidence to prove your claim. Your credit score will likely get a significant boost once you are done fixing those inaccuracies in your credit reports.
Karl
Each of the three major credit bureaus receive credit data from thousands of data providers each day. Each month, the number of updates to their database can run into the billions. Thus it is nearly impossible to avoid incorrect or incomplete information.
Each bureaus has their own procedure for consumers to dispute their credit report. However, in general, it can be broken down into six steps
Step 1 – Get Your Credit Report
You order your credit report from all of the credit bureaus. Review them and list down the incorrect or incomplete information.
Step 2 – Submit A Dispute Request
You submit your dispute request via email, telephone or using the online form provided by the credit bureaus.
Step 3 – Credit Bureaus Investigate
Upon receiving your request, the credit bureau will investigate your dispute by contacting the creditors involved.
Step 4 – Creditors Investigate and Respond To Credit Bureaus
The creditors will investigate to see if the dispute is valid. They will then respond to the bureaus with the results their investigation.
Step 5 – Credit Bureaus Update Their File
If the creditors confirm that disputes are valid, the credit bureaus will update their database with the correct information.
Step 6 – Credit Bureaus Notify You
Within 30 to 45 days, depending on how complex your dispute is, you will receive a notification about the result of your dispute. IF there are changes to your credit report, an updated copy will be send to you at no extra charge.
If you are disputing the records in your free annual credit report, the turnaround time will be 45 days.
For faster result, you can also contact the creditors directly to dispute the records in your credit reports. In this case, you can skip step 2 and 3. However, if you have no experience or are not confident in dealing with creditors directly, it is better to leave the job to the bureaus.
Once you receive the updated credit reports from the bureaus, make sure you examine them carefully to make sure the incorrect information has been removed. In the event the information you dispute has been re verify as correct, you can request the bureaus to show the record as disputed. If you want, you can also add a statement to explain the dispute.
As the credit reports contain vital information that affects your financial health, you should not hesitate to dispute any records that you know to be incorrect, especially if you have the evidence to prove your claim. Your credit score will likely get a significant boost once you are done fixing those inaccuracies in your credit reports.
Karl
